Grading the Brewers: Carlos Gomez

Time out ump…I am playing way to well. Give the other team a chance to catch their breath. Photo- Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

I am not going to do a whole lot of an intro.  Carlos Gomez was the best Brewer of 2013.  Jean Segura had a very good season, but Gomez was other worldly.  How many players do you know have robbed a home run for a walk-off win?  I had never seen it until Gomez pulled one back on Joey Votto for the final out of the game.  You don’t remember that?  Here is the video:

http://youtu.be/EjkV7ChMpHw

It was not surprising that Gomez was the “unanimous” choice for the Brewers Most Valuable Player honor.  He was the only player in baseball to hit 20 home runs and steal 40 bases.  GoGo was also an All-Star for the first time in his career.  I would say that he had the best season of any Brewers player or pitcher.

Don’t worry, I will have more to say when I break down his Performance, Attitude, and “Eye Test”.

Performance – A

Gomez was 2nd in Triples, 4th in stolen bases, 7th in Slugging percentage, 8th in extra base hits, and 2nd in outfield assists with 12.  His .284 batting average was something that slowly decreased over the season, but it is still a solid number considering how bad this season went.  I would think that Gomez will be a front-runner for a Gold Glove based on his play in the outfield.  No one ever doubted what he could do from a defensive standpoint, but the concern was always his bat.  This season, the organization just decided to let him do what he felt comfortable with and it worked.  Johnny Narron is as good as advertised, based off of his work with Segura and Gomez this season.

Attitude – B+

You have to like how he plays.  He always gives 110%, which is also his undoing.  Part of the reason he gets hurt so frequently is because of his unwillingness to pull up.  However, his intensity can lead to altercations.  For example, the little issue we had with the Braves during the last week of the season.  Whenever you have a player who doe snot shield his emotions, you will have to deal with people taking offense to that.  Generally speaking I like this kind of fire, but I also can see why people are bothered by this.  Especially baseball purist nerds like the Braves.

“Eye Test” – A

If you can find a highlight reel of just this season, watch it and try to not be impressed.  Thanks to his new contract we can look forward to several more years of amazing defense in Center Field, paired with some additional power in the lineup other than Steroids McLiar.  Gomez was well worth the trade that brought him to us from the Twins.  If I would have been doing this last season, he would have gotten a much lower score.  But this season he proved that he is the real deal and in my mind he will be a household name real soon.

Overall Grade – A+

GoGo is the teams best player, so he sets the bar for excellence.  What other grade could I give him?  The guy was so good this season that I wish A++ was really a grade that you could actually give, but I am a writer…not a make-believe artist.  What really makes Carlos special is that he still has time to grow and develop his skills even further.  I genuinely believe that splitting time in CF with Nyjer Morgan was the best thing that could have happened to him.  It showed him how to harness his natural talent and emotions through watching someone else loss control of theirs from time to time.  The future of this outfield is so bright…and I believe that Carlos Gomez is the Crown Jewel.